Wednesday, December 20, 2006

Who Could Bring These Two Together?

Just to be clear, that's Turkish foreign minister Abdullah Gul and Kid Rock. (Gul is on the left.) Talk about two people unlikely to be mentioned in the same sentence, but if you read yesterday's New York Times, there they were.

And where were they? Istanbul, of course, for the funeral of Ahmet Ertegun. (I have already given great praise to that magnificent city.) Ertegun was a musical icon, perhaps the most famous Turk in the United States, and yet unknown to most of the general public. For many, if he was known at all, it was most likely from Ray where he was played by Booger. Yet this founder of Atlantic Records was a guiding force behind Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, Led Zeppelin, and the Rolling Stones among many others. He even wrote popular songs including Chains of Love (as A. Nugetre--Ertegun spelled backwards). He also was a founder of the New York Cosmos.

Perhaps fittingly, he collapsed at a Stones concert in October in honor of President Clinton's 60th birthday, never to regain consciousness before passing away last week at 83. A giant has left us.